Ocean Rig has signed a contract with Statoil, for a one-well drilling program offshore Tanzania.
The contract is expected to start in Q1 2018, and will use the Ocean Rig Poseidon, a 6th generation deepwater drillship based on the enhanced SAIPEM 10000 design. The drillship was completed in 2011 at Samsung Heavy Industries Shipyard in South Korea.
In addition, Lundin Norway has taken its fifth option to extend the existing contract of the Leiv Eiriksson semisubmersible drilling rig which is now expected to have firm employment secured until March 2018.
Ocean Rig has granted Lundin two additional options to drill further wells in the future. Should Lundin exercise its remaining seven one-well options, the rig could be employed until the middle of 2019.
As a result, the Company has increased its estimated contract backlog by about US$20 million.